Teen Titans, The Lost Files: Shadows of Ourselves
by Naito the Shinobi
Summary: An unquenchable thirst for vengeance in a dark and misguided soul. Should he be stopped, or helped? Join the Titans in one of their most troubling confrontations never told. (OC, Non-Pairing, Plot Consistent)
1. Chapter 1, Part 1

**Author's Note: Hello everyone, and welcome to my first Teen Titans fan story! Well, perhaps "first" isn't totally accurate. This is more along the lines of a rewrite. My previous attempt at this story proved to be unsatisfactory. I have been out of the writing loop ever since I started college, so my skills have predictably grown rusty. Also, you could say that I've put so much thought into this story, I've become intimidated by it. I can only hope that my talent will do this story justice. But after some practice and settling on a fitting format, I can hardly wait to reveal all of the twists and turns that this story has to offer. The plot of this story revolves around the concept of an interesting encounter buried deep beneath the more prominant occurences within the crime-fighting careers of the Teen Titans. This is the (fictional) tale of a misguided young soul consumed by a thirst for vengeance. Nothing has ever stood in the way of his ultimate goal... that is, until the Teen Titans entered his world. Is he a friend, or is he an enemy? Should he be stopped, or helped?**

**Legal Matters: The Teen Titans and all officially endorsed items related to the Teen Titans are the property of DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios. The Teen Titans and all related items do not belong to this or any other writer unless otherwise stated by DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios, and should not be used without the consent of said companies. This is a fictional story of the author's creation and is not to be copied or used without the consent of the author, nor is it to be interpeted as an attempt to infringe on the copyrights set by DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios. The character "NightBlade" is copyrighted by NaitoTheShinobi and cannot be used without the author's consent.**

_**Teen Titans, The Lost Files: "Shadows of Ourselves"**_

A full moon hangs ominously over Jump City, glowing white in an otherwise dark and cloudy night sky. At 4:35 in the morning not many people are up and about. However, three young thieves dressed in camo pants, black sweaters, and ski masks can be seen running down a dark alley at full speed. The young man running in front has a pink purse clutched tightly in his fist. Their panting suggests that they have been running for a long time. A figure behind the other two, a young man of small stature with identical clothing as the others, begins to slow down. He eventually stops and bends over to place his hands on his knees while he breathes in large gulps of air. The second figure looks over his shoulder and stops suddenly, turning around to call to his comrade.

"What are you doing! We can't stop now! Run man, run!", he hollors.

The tired young man replies almost breathlessly. "I...can't. Gotta' stop... gotta' get my breath... I --".

Without warning, the exhausted young man falls through the shadow covered ground as if it were water. His friend can only stare in disbelief. Several feet away, the purse-carrying figure stops and turns to see what is happening behind him.

"What are you guys doing!", he calls out. "Wait. Where'd Steve go?". A male scream is heard from above. The two masked men look up and are horrified and what is happening before their eyes.

"HELP!" ... "SOMEONE!" ... "AAAAGH!"

High above their heads, the two young men are shocked to see their accomplice being hurled back and forth from shadow to shadow along the sides of the buildings, passing through them like a ghost and vanishing out of sight. His disjointed shouts and cries for help echo throughout the alley as he dissapears and reappears, his clothes becoming more tattered and torn each time he emerges. Eventually, he vanishes completely.

"What? Wha-What just happened?", stammers the purse-carrying thief. Moments later, the young man emerges from the dimly lit ground in the same fashion he had fallen through before. His attire is shredded in several places. Countless bruises and scrapes cover nearly every inch of his exposed skin. Aside from his feeble moans, the young man is completely motionless. At this point, his partners have seen all that they can handle. They turn and run as fast as their legs can carry them.

"Wait! What about Steve!", yells the second figure.

"Forget him! It's him or us!", the young man in front replies with impatience in his voice.

Meanwhile, another form rises from the ground near the unconscious young man. Engulfed entirely in darkness, its only visible feature is a pair of dark blue eyes. The unknown figure steps over the injured youth without consideration, walking in the direction of the other two at a brisk pace. Several feet ahead, the two figures come to a stop when they discover a tall chainlink fence blocking their path. The purse-carrying figure throws the handbag aside and pounces on the fence, desperately attempting to climb it. "No way man... no way! You gotta' be kidding me!", cries the second figure.

"Shut up and climb! It's our only chance!", yells the climbing thief.

"Wrong. You've got no chance at all.", a voice from behind says chillingly.

Before the two can even turn their heads to face the owner of the voice, a pair of hands grab hold of the back of their sweaters and yanks them backwards with force. The two are sent sprawling to the ground hard, the impact knocking the wind out of both of them. The second figure is knocked out while the first lays on his back, whimpering in fear. A massive black blade stabs the ground next to his head with lightning speed. Terrified, the masked young man reluctantly looks up at his assailant.

All he sees is a pair of dark blue eyes inches away from his own, staring with an unblinking gaze. A voice speaks to him, filled with ice-cold venom.

"I want you to tell me everything you know."

**One Hour Later**

Police cars and ambulances are parked at both ends of the alleyway, their flashing lights bathing the streets in a red glow. Medics carry two of the unconscious masked men on stretchers into the ambulances while the third is led on his feet with a blanket wrapped tightly around his shoulders. Without the ski mask on, the man's face reveals an expression of pure horror, his unblinking eyes as big as dinner plates and his entire body shaking violently. Meanwhile, police officers and investigators carefully and methodically comb the alley for evidence. Accompanying them are the protectors of Jump City, the Teen Titans.

"No footprints, no fingerprints... not one clue. Whoever we're dealing with here definately knows what they're doing. Cyborg, are you getting anything on your scanners?", says Robin.

Cyborg peers over a digital read-out on his left arm. "I think so. My scanners are picking up some kind of metallic residue that's covering most of the alley, but my databanks don't have anything that even comes close to its molecular structure. It's weird... like it doesn't even exist! Now what about Fido over there? He find anything yet?"

A green bloodhound in the distance growls, then transforms into Beast Boy. "Hardy har har. Listen to the stand-up tin man. Anyway, I must've scoped this place like twenty times already and I can't get anything other than those three robber guys. Man... I don't think my nose'll work the same way again!", he groans while rubbing his red and throbbing nose.

Starfire slowly drifts down to the ground with a dissapointed look in her eyes. "I'm afraid I could not find anything of use while I searched from the sky. Were any of you successful in finding clues?", she asks. The silence and expressions of the three male Titans is enough to convince the disheartened alien girl otherwise. At the entrance of the alley, Raven walks away from the ambulance as it drives off along with the police. She lifts her hood over her facial features as the others make their way to her.

"I couldn't get anything from the first two. Their subconcsiousness was too panicked to respond to anything I tried. The other one wasn't injured as badly but his state of mind was even worse. All I know is that something attacked them and scared them, almost to the point of mental collapse.", she says in her usual melancholy tone.

"How horrible! They may have been criminals, but those thieves did not deserve what happened to them! Who could have done this?", Starfire says shocked and outraged. Cyborgdeactivates the digital read-out on his arm.

"This city's got alot of bad guys running around Star. For all we know, it could've been anyone.", he replies.

"The only thing we have to go on is that residue Cyborg's scanners found. We'd better head back to the Tower and take a closer look at it. I've got a feeling that once we find out what that metal is made of, we'll be one step closer to finding whoever did this.", Robin states as he looks back down the now desered alley.

Beast Boy yawns and scratches his back. "Yeah, that's great. Now I don't know about you guys, but I could really go back to catching some major Z's. I'm fried! Besides, I totally doubt anybody else is up. What could possibly happen at this hour?"

The scream of a young male suddenly pierces the otherwise quiet night air.

"Aww man! Come on." Complains Beast Boy as he rubs the side of his weary head while drool dribbles down his open mouth.

"It seems like our friend isn't done for the night.", Raven says.

Robin point in the direction of the scream. "It came from the next block over! Teen Titans, move!"

**A Few Minutes Later**

The Titans arrive at the entrance of yet another dark alley. A nearby street lamp illuminates the alley for several feet, but beyond is total darkness. Another scream rings out, closer now. Footsteps can be heard growing louder and echoing against the sides of the alley. Then, from the darkness, a blond and wavy-haired adolescent boy in grey and red skateboard attire emerges, running and panting exhaustedly. In his haste, the boy nearly runs straight into the Titans. The boy's eyes are wide with fear and amazement as he comes to a stop. "You gotta' help me! There's something after me! Please help me. You gotta' get me out of here!", the boy pleads.

"Hold up little man! Try to calm down and tell us everything that's going on." Cyborg says. The boy, with tears welling up in the corners of his eyes, does his best to explain.

"Ok, ok... I started to go for this guy's wallet, but before I could get to it I felt something grab me! I got away and I started running as fast as I could but no matter where I went, I felt something following me! I look behind me and there's this black shadow-thing on the ground chasing me, trying to swallow me up or something! I think it's still after me!"

Beast Boy cross his arms in disgust. "Wait a sec. You tried to steal someone's wallet and now you want us to help you get away? Dude, who do you think we are?". The young thief falls on his knees, begging and groveling.

"No! You got it all wrong! I don't care if you turn me over to the cops! I'll even go to juvi! Just, please! Get me out of here!"

"Everybody, quiet!", Robin yells suddenly.

The whole group looks at Robin in surprised silence. A low rumbling sound can be heard in the distance. "Does anyone else hear that? Cyborg, can you see what's ahead?", Robin says quietly.

"Yeah, I hear it to. Hold on. I got it...", Cyborg says as he walks ahead of the group and activates a hidden searchlight mounted on his left shoulder. Although Cyborg's light further illuminates the once dimly lit alley, it does little to reveal the source of the noise. Starfire looks down at her feet and discovers that the pebbles beneath her are trembling. Puzzled, she turns to Robin.

"Perhaps this is one of your 'earthquakes'? On my homeworld we experienced similar occurences at least once every Flebnar.", she suggests.

"HIT THE DIRT! NOW!", shouts Cyborg as he dives to the ground.

Without question the Teen Titans follow suit and pull the confused pickpocket with them. In the distance an enormous black spinning object roars through the air horizontally, slicing through the sides of the surrounding buildings with ease and spraying pieces of masonry in every direction. Like a helicopter rotor, the object careens over the heads of the Titans and slices its way out of the alley. The object eventually smashes and imbeds itself into the side of a red car parked across the street, flipping the automobile onto its side with tremendous force. The glow of streetlights reveal the object as a massive dual-ended blade, completely black and non-reflective. Cautiously, the Titans rise to their feet. The young thief stands up and looks back towards the wreckage of the red car. He swoons and faints, sprawling himself out on the ground like a rag doll.

"Dude! What was that all about!", cries Beast Boy.

"I don't know. Is everyone alright?", Robin ask as he looks around. Ravenbrushes dirt off of her sleeves while looking down at the unconscious thief.

"Other than nearly being beheaded... I would say fine.", she says flatly. Cyborggrumbles as he pulls a piece of masonry out of the shattered lens of his searchlight.

"You call this fine? Man, I just refitted this thing!", he complains.

"Whatever that was, it had to have had an owner.", says Robin as he walks to the head of the group and calls out. "Whoever's down there, show yourself!"

The voice of a young man responds from the darkness. Its tone is calm, but cold and serious. "I don't have any problems with you. I'm just after that punk.", it sais. Starfire hovers alongside Robin and Cyborg, then speaks in a louder and somewhat angry tone in the direction of the voice.

"If you were only purseuing that young thief, then why did you endanger us? It is not nice to attack random people with such large and sharp weapons!", she cries.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know you were there. That was only supposed to slow him down.", the voice replies.

Cyborg shakes his metal fist as a vein appears over his forehead."Slow him down! Oh, it would've slowed him down alright! Are you out of your mind!", he shouts outraged.

"Hold on Cyborg. I think we just have a misunderstanding here." Robin says before calling out to the shadows once again. "Whoever you are, we're not going to hurt you. All we want to know is who you are and why you're chasing this kid."

Several moments of silence pass, until footsteps can be heard moving closer to the Titans. A dark silhouette begins to emerge from the shadows of the alley. The figure's features can be seen more clearly as it steps into the light of the nearby street lamp illuminating the Titans.

Out from the darkness walks a young man only a few inches taller than Robin. His stride is slow and methodical while giving a sense of hidden caution. A zipped up, hooded black jacket conceals his thin yet muscular frame. The hood's lengthy adjusting strings hang loosely from each side of the jacket's collar. The young man's hands are tucked into the pockets of his jacket as he stops a few feet away from the Titans. Gazing upon the five superteens are the boy's dark blue eyes, the outer corners of them partially hidden by his long, spiked, and uneven bangs. His medium-length jet-black hair shines dimly in the white light of the street lamp. From the bridge of his nose and down over a third of his neck, the young man's pale face is concealed by a tightly fitted black mask. However, the mask is not enough to conceal the thin black scar running vertically down from the inner corner of his right eye and down beyond the material of the mask. His pants, a loose pair of navy-blue khakis with several pockets on the upper thighs, cover his long legs. A pair of ash-gray velcro fastened sneakers are partially hidden by the ends of the boy's khakis.

Upon sight of the young man, Raven's mind is wracked with a sudden stabbing pain. She recoils and holds her head in agony as strange images assault her at maddening speeds. Images of a towering silhouette, a shadowy boy kneeling beside a fallen figure concealed in darkness, and countless terrified faces; they all invade Raven's mind in machine gun succession. A groan of pain escapes between Raven's now-clenched teeth, even after the images begin to fade. At first, everything around her is inaudible due to a loud ringing in her ears. She strains to regain her composure, just in time to see Cyborg and Beast Boy giving her a concerned look.

"Yo, Rae. Raven. You ok?", asks Cyborg .

"Something's not right about him. Be careful.", Raven responds.

"Heh. You could've fooled us.", replies Beast Boy smartly. In the distance, the dark-clad boy slides his hands out of the pockets of his jacket. His hands are partially covered by black fingerless gloves with rectangular openings in the back, exposing the pale skin of his hands. His fingers curl inwards and crack before they relax by his side. "My name's not important. But if you have to know, I call myself NightBlade. As for why I'm chasing that kid, I think he may have information I need to take down an even bigger scumbag than him... and I'm going to get that information, one way or another." he says, his tone becoming more menacing. "He's in no condition to help anyone." Robin says as he points to the young thief, who is now beginning to regain consciousness. "Besides, threats aren't going to make this situation any better!" "If you don't get out of my way, you'll force me to do more than just make threats.", replies NightBlade.

During his vast experiences in dealing with dangerous individuals, the Boy Wonder had honed his instincts to a fine edge. They came to easily recognize the signs of an imminent attack and seldom were those instincts ever wrong. In this case, Robin's instincts were telling him that the person standing several feet away from him is not the kind of person that will easily back down. A familiar tightness develops in Robin's stomach. "This is going to be a long night." he thinks to himself as he draws his staff and extends it to its full length. Behind the Titans, the blonde thief sits up and looks around in confusion. "Hey... what's going on?", he says wearily.

"Beast Boy, get this kid out of here and get back as soon as possible. It's not safe for him here.", Robin orders. Beast Boy nods and walk over to the thief.

"Got it. Alright dude, I'm taking you down to the police so they can watch you, ok?". A green cheetah appears where Beast Boy once stood. Scooping the puzzled pick-pocket up with its teeth and lifting him onto its back, the cheetah gives a growl and sprints out of the alley and down the quiet deserted street.

Upon seeing this, NightBlade's eyes narrow. He begins to run in the direction that Beast Boy went, but the other Titans quickly block his path to the exit of the alley. NightBlade stops with his arms loosely at his sides and takes several slow steps backwards. Without taking his eyes off of the Titans, NightBlade undoes the zipper of his jacket and pulls it off, wrapping it around his waist with a simple knot. The rest of his attire can be easily seen despite its complete lack of light colors. A navy blue t-shirt hangs over his slim body while also covering a skin-tight long sleeved shirt composed of a black material resembling spandex, yet somehow different in its non-reflective appearance. The black string of a necklace can be seen hanging around the exposed part of NightBlade's neck, but what it is attached to is tucked and hidden beneath the collar of the navy blue shirt.

"So this is how it's going to be, huh? You're not giving me much of a choice.", NightBlade says. A black mist suddenly forms around NightBlade's right arm. He then begins to sink into the shadow-covered ground. NightBlade's eyes stay locked on the Titans even as his body dissapears into the darkness. Within moments he vanishes completely.

"Eek! He melted!", gasps Starfire.

"Uhh... you think maybe he pulled a Mumbo on us?", Cyborg asks as he raises his eyebrow.

"No. He's still here somewhere.", Raven replies as she looks around.

"You can sense him Raven? Where is he?", Robin asks.

"I don't know. I can feel that he's here, but something's different. It's like he's all around us; not just hiding somewhere."

"Can you get anything else?"

Raven sighs."When he first appeared, something happened. I saw parts of his memories. They came too fast to make any sense, but the emotions that they carried were some of the most intense I've ever sensed from anyone. Anger, grief, confusion, and a desperate need for revenge. Those were the only emotions I could feel from him. He's -- above us!"

Out of surprise, the Titans look towards the sky. Surrounded by the white glow of the full moon, NightBlade descends from the rooftops. A massive sword-like black blade is held tightly in his hands and pointed directly downwards at the Titans as he falls at an alarming speed. With little time for the Titans to react, NightBlade strikes with quickness and force.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	2. Chapter 2, Part 1

**Author's Notes: "At first, this chapter and the next one were going to be all one part. But after looking at the first chapter and after realizing how long this one was going to be, I decided to cut this particular chapter in half to make it easier on your eyes. Just glancing through the first chapter made my eyes sore! But anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter and the next one. I guaranteee you'll be in for an action-packed read!"**

**Legal Matters: The Teen Titans and all officially endorsed items related to the Teen Titans are the property of DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios. The Teen Titans and all related items do not belong to this or any other writer unless otherwise stated by DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios, and should not be used without the consent of said companies. This is a fictional story of the author's creation and is not to be copied or used without the consent of the author, nor is it to be interpeted as an attempt to infringe on the copyrights set by DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios. The character "NightBlade" is copyrighted by Naito the Shinobi and cannot be used without the author's consent.**

_**Teen Titans, The Lost Files: "Shadows of Ourselves"**_

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!", Raven cries.

With her arms outstretched to each side, Raven creates a barrier of black energy around herself and her friends as quickly as she can. NightBlade's surprise attack is stopped mere inches from the heads of the Titans as black electricity erupts from the point of impact on Raven's shield. A deafening roar shakes the alley as the two opposing forces collide violently. However, Raven's actions were not fast enough to keep the tip of the black blade from becoming trapped and imbedded within the protective field of dark energy.

A part of his weapon stuck inside the barrier, NightBlade struggles with all of his might to force the blade further within and break the dome-shaped obstruction. Waves of black sparks pour all around the massive edged weapon and its owner. Inside the barrier, Raven grits her teeth and struggles to hold her creation together. Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg can only watch on helplessly.

Despite his best efforts, NightBlade cannot budge his sword-like weapon a single inch. He suddenly lets go of the weapon's handle and in an instant, the sword explodes into a cloud of black mist and evaporates. The sudden lack of resistance catches Raven off-guard, destroying her concentration along with her barrier in an overwhelming flash of black energy. The destruction of Raven's barrier also catches NightBlade off-guard, sending him backwards to the ground with a heavy thud. He uses the momentum of the fall to roll backwards to his feet in a low crouch.

At the entrance of the alley, Beast Boy appears around the corner with an eyebrow raised. "Um, did I miss anything?", he asks.

Robin grits his teeth. "Not at all. Teen Titans, attack!"

Robin leads the retaliation with a head-on charge and his staff tucked under his right arm. NightBlade stands his ground by bending his knees and flexing his hands, even as Robin grips his staff and prepares for the first move. With a battle cry, Robin finally strikes with a massive swing from the right side. NightBlade deflects the blow with his forearm, but is quickly met with a jarring hit to the face as Robin quickly spins to his left and catches his mysterious opponent with a smack across the cheek by the metallic pole. Reeling from the hit, NightBlade recovers just in time to catch Robin's staff as the Boy Wonder attempts an overheard strike. The two of them struggle briefly before NightBlade loosens his grip on the staff and allows it to slam into the ground beside him. Before Robin can react, a vicious elbow strike to the stomach from NightBlade steals his breath away, followed by a right palm-heel strike to the jaw that sends him spinning backwards on his feet. Gritting his teeth in frustration, Robin sprints toward his opponent and leaps through the air with a flying spinning kick. However, the only thing that Robin's kick makes contact with is the cool night air. After landing, he sees that NightBlade is nowhere in sight until he glances over his shoulder and discovers that the dark-clad teenager is headed right for the other Titans. Turning in the direction of his teammates, Robin chases his enemy and rubs his jaw angrily.

"How is he doing that?", he grumbles to himself.

Meanwhile the other four Titans prepare themselves for whatever action NightBlade may make. Cyborg takes aim with his sonic cannon and fires wave after wave of energized sound, but misses each time as NightBlade dives and rolls to avoid each blast. Dirt erupts all around NightBlade in thick plumes from every missed sonic beam. With NightBlade now a foot away, Cyborg resorts to hand to hand combat and throws a hard right hook with his massive metal fist. At the last moment NightBlade makes one last dive, which carries him through Cyborg's legs like a professional baseball player sliding for home plate. NightBlade quickly spins around on his back after passing beneath a confused Cyborg, then stops and kicks hard at the back of Cyborg's knees, causing him to cry out in surprise and fall to the ground kneeling. Before he can get back up, Cyborg feels a pair of hands grip his metal shoulders and then finds himself being slammed forcefully backwards to the ground.

NightBlade quickly turns away from the dazed Cyborg and sprints towards the alley's exit. However, he doesn't get far when a green tiger suddenly blocks his way out. The tiger lets out a powerful roar before pouncing. NightBlade barely manages to avoid a swipe from one of the tiger's claws, but cannot move fast enough to dodge the green animal's pounce. The cat's growls ring in NightBlade's ears as he fights to stay on his feet, but a well-placed starbolt to the legs from Starfire causes NightBlade to fall to the ground hard. Sliding a foot onto the tiger's stomach and pushing outward, NightBlade struggles to keep the large green beast from coming any closer. In a heartbeat, the tiger suddenly morphs into a powerful green grizzly bear, snarling and swiping at NightBlade's face. The sudden change of weight causes NightBlade to squeeze his eyes shut and groan in pain as he strains to keep the large green animal from crushing him. With a cry of determination, NightBlade suddenly grabs hold of the massive bear's paws and rolls backwards in one fluid motion that sends the roaring green grizzly hurtling through the air. A stunned Starfire gets hit by the flying green bear and both are sent crashing into the side of one of the surrounding buildings before falling to the ground. Beast Boy lays dizzily on his back on top of Starfire, who is sprawled out and nearly crushed by Beast Boy's previous form.

NightBlade looks back towards the exit of the alley. As he turns to run, he suddenly finds himself unable to move. A giant claw of black energy grips NightBlade's upper body tightly, pinning his arms to his sides so that only his hands can move around freely. Glancing over his shoulder, NightBlade follows the stream of black energy to Raven. Her right hand, clenched tightly into a fist, is the source of the dark youth's immobilization. "Stop this. We don't want to hurt you.", she says. NightBlade struggles and manages to turn himself around to face Raven while in her clutches.

"Then let me go. We both have the same goals, so what do you care if one punk gets his?", he snaps.

"This isn't about one thief. This is about what you're doing and how you're going too far.", Raven replies with concern in her voice.

Robin runs to her side. "She's right. What if you end up seriously hurting someone? If you keep going the way you are, then you're no better than any of the criminals you're hunting down. You'll be one of them!", he says angrily. NightBlade stares coldly at the two Titans.

"So you think this is all about me? Please. You don't know anything about me and what I've been through, so don't even try to push your moral bologna on me." As he speaks, a thick black mist begins to form around NightBlade's right hand. The dark vapor swirls and twists as though it had a mind of its own. "I've gone too far to stop now. I've come so close to finding the scum that took everything away from me and I won't let anything stand in my way! Not you, not anyone else!"

The black mist surrounding NightBlade's right hand suddenly takes form and solidifies within its creator's grasp, accompanied by a sound similar to the hiss of an angered serpent. Its shape resembles a dual-ended sickle with one blade on each end, each one facing the opposite direction of the other. Like all of the other weapons witnessed by the Titans, NightBlade's creation is completely black with no markings on its non-reflective service aside from strange and sinister-looking curved protrusions along the bladed portions of the weapon.

"Raven! Look out!", cries Robin.

His warning alerts Raven to the sudden danger. However, the warning does little to stop NightBlade from flinging his creation in Raven's direction. Surprised, Raven releases her hold on NightBlade just in time to avoid the potentially deadly object as it shoots through the air while spinning rapidly. The weapon cleanly slices off a large portion of Raven's flowing cloak before it imbeds itself into the side of one of the nearby buildings, then inexplicably explodes into its previous and harmless mist-like state.

NightBlade stumbles as he is released from Raven's telekinetic grip. However, Starfire wastes little time in depriving her mysterious enemy of his short break. With a cry she fires a powerful beam of green energy from her eyes that hits NightBlade in his left shoulder, causing him wince with pain and recoil. Another eyebeam from Starfire nearly misses its target and causes NightBlade to instinctively lunge to his left. Unfortunately for NightBlade, the brick and cement side of the closest building prevents him from going any further. To make matters worse, Robin launches a grappling hook that tightly wraps itself around NightBlade's legs. The dark blue eyes of the masked youth stare chillingly at the Titans as a famliar black mist begins to form again. This time, around both of NightBlade's arms. Robin's masked eyes narrow as he instantly recognizes what may happen next.

"Cyborg, now!", he shouts. Robin, Starfire, Raven, and Beast Boy quickly step aside. A smirking Cyborg appears from behind his teammates, his sonic cannon poised and ready to fire. NightBlade can only look on as a beam of sonic energy from Cyborg's cannon collides with his mid-section. The force of the blast smashes NightBlade through the hard surface of the building behind him, punching a massive hole into the building with a deafening crash and flooding the alley with a thick cloud of dust. Afterwards, nothing can be heard except the occasional piece of masonry falling onto a pile of masonry at the mouth of the hole. The hole itself is dark and nothing can be seen inside. The Titans cautiously move towards it.

"I believe we are victorious!", Starfire cries happily.

Cyborg grins and reverts his sonic cannon back to his metal hand. "Heh heh! Boo-yah, baby!", he shouts.

"I wouldn't celebrate just yet. He could be hiding in there.", Robin says skeptically.

Beast Boy laughs. "Are you serious? The dude got blown through the side of a building! I don't think he'll be going after us again for awhile.", he says with a smile. Robin remains optimistic.

"I'm not so sure.We fought criminals that wouldn't give up, no matter what we hit them with. He's no Cinderblock but we better make sure, just in case."

Robin produces a small flashlight from his utility belt and shines it inside the gaping hole. Inside the building, the Titans can make out shelves of various food items and other goods. Robin's flashlight reveals the interior as a small convenience store. Its lights are automatically turned on a moment later as a security alarm activates, flooding the small store with the sound of an alarm bell in the process.

"Everyone stay alert. I'll go in first.", Robin says. Carefully, the Boy Wonder steps into the convenience store. Footprints can seen on the polished blue floor. Everything else within the store appears perfectly normal. Cyborg's voice suddenly calls out from Robin's communicator.

"Find anything yet?", he asks.

Robin glances around. "Other than a 20 sale on Nachitos, nothing yet. Can you still sense him Raven?"

"He's inside alright. But I still can't tell where he is exactly.", her voice replies over the communicator.

Robin exhales frustratedly. "Alright. I'll keep you updated on what's--"

A gloved hand from around the corner of the aisle suddenly grabs hold of Robin's vest and violently throws him against shelves stocked with soft drinks. Not sure of what just happened, Robin groggily looks around. It doesn't take long for him to see NightBlade standing directly ahead. In NightBlade's right hand is an enormous black scythe, poised to strike and slice anything in its path into pieces. Robin knows he must act quickly before he becomes superhero cold cuts.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	3. Chapter 3, Part 1

**Legal Matters: The Teen Titans and all officially endorsed items related to the Teen Titans are the property of DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios. The Teen Titans and all related items do not belong to this or any other writer unless otherwise stated by DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios, and should not be used without the consent of said companies. This is a fictional story of the author's creation and is not to be copied or used without the consent of the author, nor is it to be interpeted as an attempt to infringe on the copyrights set by DC Comics and Warner Brothers Studios. The character "NightBlade" is copyrighted by Naito the Shinobi and cannot be used without the author's consent.**

_**Teen Titans, The Lost Files: "Shadows of Ourselves"**_

NightBlade lunges for Robin with his scythe, swinging downwards in a left diagonal path aimed at the Boy Wonder's head. Robin barely manages to roll out of the way as the scythe's blade comes down and buries itself cleanly into the floor, evaporating into black mist shortly after its impact. NightBlade turns and stares coldly into Robin's eyes. A metallic squeal is heard. The shelves that were previously behind Robin begin to slide downwards along a fine diagonal cut. Suddenly, NightBlade charges at Robin. At the same time, the shelves of soft drinks behind the two opponents crash to the floor in a heap. Soda spews into the air in fountains, drenching both Robin and NightBlade as they grapple. Robin pulls away enough to slam his fist into NightBlade's face, but NightBlade responds by grabbing Robin by the front of his vest and delivering a vicious headbutt that causes Robin to see a bright white flash as it connects. Both of them are sent staggering backwards from the blow.

Explosions of green energy erupt all around NightBlade. Starfire and the other Titans rush through the gaping hole to Robin's side. At a disadvantage between the confines of the aisle and the Titans standing before him, NightBlade quickly climbs up the the remaining shelves of soft drinks and begins to leap from the top of one aisle to the other.

"Robin, are you injured? Your transmission ended abruptly and we feared that you were hurt.", Starfire says in a concerned tone.

Robin rubs his right temple, shaking off the effects of the headbutt. "I'm fine.", he replies as he looks up at where NightBlade jumped. "Beast Boy, I need you to push this aisle down. It doesn't look like he can fly, so knocking down these aisles should trip him."

Beast Boy smirks and transforms into a ram which throws itself headlong into the aisle, sending it crashing into the next one and causing a domino effect among the other aisles.

"Starfire and Raven, we'll need you to grab him if he doesn't fall.", Robin orders.

The two of them give a nod and fly over the collapsed aisles, beginning their chase.

"Cyborg and Beast Boy, you're with me. We'll head him off if Starfire and Raven can't get to him.", Robin says before he sprints towards the opposite end of the store. Beast Boy and Cyborg follow closely behind him.

Meanwhile, NightBlade continues to jump from aisle to aisle. He discovers that the aisles he previously leaped from are rapidly collapsing behind him. He also sees that Starfire and Raven are closing in on him. To make matters worse, there are only a few aisles left before NightBlade is forced to head back down to the gound and risk being captured by the three figures below. Starfire's starbolts rock the aisle below NightBlade, nearly throwing off his balance while sending bits of potato chips and breakfast cereals into the air. Broken shelves fly by NightBlade's body as Raven uses her telekinetic powers in an attempt to slow him down. The shelves miss their target and instead crash into the glass doors of the frozen food section, shattering them into hundreds of pieces.

NightBlade can see Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy waiting for him several feet the final aisle. With only two leaps left, NightBlade's right hand becomes surrounded by the familiar black mist. Raven and Starfire increase their speed, knowing that they only have one chance to catch their enemy. NightBlade's foot makes contact with the last aisle as it begins to fall due to the previous aisle smashing into it. At the very last moment, NightBlade throws himself headfirst off of the collapsing aisle. Robin and Cyborg launch a barrage of birdarangs and sonic blasts at NightBlade while Beast Boy makes an unsuccessful jumping swipe at him in the form of a cougar.

Time seems to slow to a crawl for NightBlade as he rotates to his left onto his back in mid-air, barely clearing the danger from below. He can see the look of surprise on Raven and Starfire's faces as swings his right hand from the left side of his body to his right. A trail of dark mist follows his hand, which unexpectantly unleashes a storm of small, flat, and black shuriken-like objects. They slice through several signs and aisle markers hanging from the cieling as they scream through the air towards Raven and Starfire. The two of them dive towards the collapsed aisles with barely a moment to spare, but not before Starfire recieves a glancing blow to her upper right arm from a stray shuriken. She winces and holds her arm in pain as she lands and looks towards the others. Robin's eyes widen while baring witness to Starfire's injury, but something else soon catches his attention.

Behind the Titans, NightBlade crashes to the store floor. He rolls and slides several feet across the floor from his hard fall before coming to a stop near the check-out counter. Groggily, NightBlade readjusts his vision in time to see an angry Robin plant a jumping kick into his chest. The force of the blow sends NightBlade rolling backwards twice before he stops in a kneeling position on one knee. A furious cry from Robin acts as a cue for NightBlade to duck, just as Robin's metallic pole whistles through the air inches above NightBlade's lowered head. In response, NightBlade shoots his right leg out in sweeping motion sending Robin to the polished store floor.

The other Titans watch the fight from several feet away while tending to Starfire's wound. Beast Boy looks down towards the floor for a moment, noticing a large pool of water and soft drinks forming nearby. An idea creeps into his head.

"Hey guys! Keep that dude distracted. I've got a plan!", he cries right before transforming into a giant ocean bed sponge. A sucking sound is heard from the massive sponge as it soaks up the liquids from the store floor. The others look on in confusion, but eventually go along with Beast Boy's request as they begin to attack NightBlade from afar.

NightBlade frustratedly crafts a large scimitar-shaped black blade in each hand to deflect the barrage of starbolts, sonic blasts, and chunks of ruined metal aimed at him. His movements with the blades resemble a deadly dance; every slash and swipe resembling a cross between the fierce resolve of a samurai warrior and the grace of an Arabian swordsman. However, NightBlade's finesse is slowed by exhaustion, resulting in many of the projectiles hitting their mark. He is eventually forced near the glass doors of the store's entrance. In the distance, the green mammoth lumbers closer and its eyes narrow in concentration. Robin looks away from his opponent long enough to notice the massive green beast, then wisely runs back to the other Titans to give Beast Boy a clear target. In an instant, the mighty trunk of the mammoth takes aim and unleashes a torrent of soda and water in the direction of the store's entrance. The stream of liquids is too large and powerful for NightBlade to escape. His eyes widen as the flood of water and soda engulf him and smash him through the glass doors behind him. Nearly half the front of the store collapses and bursts from the force of the flood. Millions of glass shards explode into the city street along with a river of soda-water and large pieces of brick.

NightBlade is flung backwards against the side of a parked blue pick-up truck. The impact rocks the vehicle hard and nearly forces NightBlade into unconsciousness. He fights to stay awake while sitting limply against the passenger side of the truck. A nearby streetlight reveals to him the ruins of the storefront. It also reveals a giant green bull barreling towards him at full speed, crashing through the wreckage of the storefront with ease and mooing angrily. Looking down at his sides, NightBlade realizes his hands are still tightly gripping the blades he created from before. He then notices the nearby streetlight shaking from the green bull's heavy galloping. With the bull only a few feet away and quickly closing the gap, NightBlade struggles to lift his right arm. He winces from the soreness in his body, but manages to summon enough strength to toss the blade sideways and send the weapon spinning through the steel pole of the streetlight. Electrical sparks pour out from a cut made near the base of the pole before the entire top section of the streetlight comes crashing down. The bulb portion of the streetlight smashes heavily across the green bull's head in mid-stride, knocking it out cold and causing it to collapse merely two feet away from NightBlade's outstretched legs.

Slowly, NightBlade lifts himself onto his feet using the side of the truck for support. Through the shadows of the store's destroyed entrance, NightBlade can make out the other Titans making their way towards him. Looking back towards his right, he notices the cover of the truck's fuel tank. NightBlade reverses his grip on the blade in his left hand, then quickly passes the blade to his right hand and drives the weapon halfway through the truck's fuel tank. Its contents spill out onto the pavement below and soon forms a lake of gasoline.

Afterwards, the four Titans cautiously step out of the ruined storefront. Starfire gasps as her eyes fall on the unconscious Beast Boy. She quickly flies to his side with a torn piece of Robin's green sleeve wrapped tightly around her injury. The faces of Robin, Raven, and Cyborg are deadly serious.

"Alright...", began Robin. "... we tried doing this nicely, but I can see there's no reasoning with the likes of you. We're taking you to jail. But before we do, I only have one question: why are you doing this? We could've helped you. It didn't have to happen this way."

NightBlade scans the group with his eyes, then awkwardly adjusts his posture until he stands upright. Most of his joints crack as he moves.

"This is something I have to do alone.", he says. "Someone in this city took my father away from me and I refuse to let that someone answer to anyone else. Not even you. Finding my father's executioner is something I have to do on my own. "

"So that's who you're looking for.", Raven says as her eyes narrow. "Revenge isn't the answer. In the end, it'll only consume you. The people you hurt won't make things any better either... and it won't bring back what you lost."

NightBlade lowers and shakes his head slowly from side to side.

"Do you think I haven't learned that already? I know that nothing I do will ever bring him back. But I also know this...", he says as he slides the black blade out of the truck's fuel tank, causing even more gasoline to spill onto the ground. The Titans notice this as NightBlade continues.

"... taking me to jail won't matter all that much. You see, I've become a prisoner of my own hate and taking down that scumbag has become my only key to freedom from all this. I'm sure it sounds pretty cliche to you by now. I'm sure you've dealt with crooks, criminals, and psychopaths just like me. That same old song and dance with the dark avenger on his obsessive quest for revenge. But I'm nobody's hero, and I couldn't care less about what you think of me. We all have our reasons for being here. So you can either stay out of my way or I swear I'll cut my way through you, just like I've cut my way through everything else that tried to stop me."

Without warning, NightBlade simultaneously strikes the ground with the tip of his blade while jumping and rolling across the hood of the truck. The Titans shield their eyes and recoil as a spark from the black blade ignites the gasoline, explosively transforming the truck into a raging inferno. A large wall of smoke and fire obscures the view of the rest of the street. Cyborg fires a sonic blast into the heart of the flames, snuffing out the blaze with the sonic vibrations of the blast. Nothing remains of the truck except a smoldering heap of metal, rubber, and charred upholstery. The street is completely empty and silent except for the chirping of birds. Over the horizon, the sun begins to rise. Beast Boy stirs and shapeshifts back to his human form.

"Ugh... did we get him?", he asks with a small smile while rubbing his head.

Robin turns to face Raven. "Is he still here?"

"No.", she replies. "I can't sense NightBlade anywhere. He's gone, for now."

"Just what we need. Another angsty wacko on the loose.", Cyborg comments before looking down at an annoyed Raven. "Err... no offense, Ray."

Raven shakes her head and pulls down the hood of her cloak. "He calls himself a pyscopath, but I don't believe that. Sure, he doesn't play by our kind of rules. However, I think the only reason he hunts criminals the way he does is because that is all he knows. His rage won't allow him to see any other way."

Starfire looks back at the group as she helps Beast Boy to stand. "Your logic seems very accurate Raven. In ancient times, many people on my home planet were ruthless and savage warriors who knew little besides war and destruction. In fact, there are many people on my world who fit that description as we speak!"

Cyborg crosses his arms while surveying the damage done to the store. "If that's the case, then why did he say he didn't want to fight us when we first met him?"

"Because it's like what NightBlade said before.", Robin replies. "We stopped him from getting to that kid. We were in his way and we refused to back down, so he saw us as just another obstacle to get by."

"Whoa... hey guys, check this out!" Beast Boy says as he points to the ground near the fallen streetlight. The black blade that NightBlade had used earlier now lays on its side in the light of the rising sun. A sizzling sound is heard from the surface of the scimitar-shaped weapon as the sun's rays shine upon it, just before it shatters violently and evaporates into black mist. "You think maybe that's why he ran away? Maybe he's like some kind of vampire? He's definately creepy like one, that's for sure."

"I don't think so.", Robin says as he stoops down and runs a gloved finger across the pavement where the blade had been. "That weapon was definately made from the same metal Cyborg's scanners found earlier. Somehow, NightBlade can make that metal from his own body and turn it into whatever weapon he needs. But from what we've seen, he only made simple hand-to-hand weapons. I think his powers limit him from making anything more complicated than that."

"Then how did this 'NightBlade' vanish the way he did during our battle? We all witnessed how he went through the ground, then fell from the sky. Perhaps he also has the ability to instantly transport himself from one location to another?", asks Starfire as she thinks aloud.

Robin stands up and wipes his hand across his vest. "Maybe. But if we're going to learn anything more about him, we should head back to the Tower and see what we can find in our database. We should also take a look at that metal to get a better idea of what we're up against."

As the Titans leave, a dark figure watches them from around the corner of the ruined store. Its inhuman and melancholy red eyes glow softly in the shadows. In the distance, a blaring squad of police cars and fire trucks race down the street in the direction of the store. The red eyes vanish. All that remains is a set of three claw marks dug deep into the building's masonry.

TO BE CONTINUED...


End file.
